Religious Investors Turn up the Heat on Governance
Issues

December 11, 2002 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A coalition of
religious orders and environmentally activist investors have
unveiled global warming related shareholder resolutions
targeted at the world's two largest automakers.

The resolutions, which were filed at General Motors
Corporation and Ford Motor Company ask that the companies
measure and report to their shareholders on carbon dioxide
– so-called “greenhouse gas” – emissions from their plants
and products, and commit to significantly reducing those
emissions by 2012.

California “Steaming”

According to a press release from the Interfaith Center
on Corporate Responsibility, the resolutions were
triggered, in part, by the role that GM and Ford played in
fighting both improved federal fuel economy standards and a
recently passed California law concerning clean air
standards and vehicle emissions.

The California law will require automakers to slice
their greenhouse gas emissions and to sell emission-free
vehicles in California.

The filers at Ford Motor Company include:

the Sisters of St. Dominic of Caldwell New
Jersey,

the United Church Foundation of the United Church of
Christ,

the Sisters of St. Joseph of Philadelphia,

the Adrian Dominican Sisters,

Christian Brothers Investment Services, and

the Sisters of the Holy Cross, Notre Dame, among
others.

At General Motors, the filers include:

the Sisters of St. Dominic of Caldwell New
Jersey

the United Church Foundation

the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate,

the Benedictine Sisters,

the Sisters of St. Joseph of La Grange, Illinois,
and

the Jesuit Conference, among others.

Reputational Risk?

“We believe that both General Motors and Ford face
material and reputational risk in their current failure to
address and reduce carbon dioxide emissions,” said Patricia
Daly, executive director of the Tri-State Coalition for
Responsible Investment, which represents more than 30
religious orders and Diocesen members from the states of
Connecticut, New Jersey and New York.

The resolution filed with each company asks “that the
Company report to shareholders (at reasonable cost and
omitting proprietary information) by August 2003 on (a)
estimated total annual greenhouse gas emissions (i) from
our company’s own operations and (ii) from its products;
(b) how the company can significantly reduce greenhouse gas
emissions from its fleet of vehicle product (using a 2002
baseline) by 2012 and 2020; and (c) an evaluation of what
new public policies would enable and assist the company in
achieving these emission reductions.”